Conversations on Independent Devised Theatre

We returned to our Academy of Applied Arts in Rijeka, where on June 10 and 12, 2026, as part of the Acting and Media programme, we held conversations with students on the topic of Independent devised theatre in practice.

The first talk took place as part of Professor Milica Czerny Urban’s Aesthetics course with first-year Acting students. We presented our professional journey, from studying Acting and Media to founding an independent artistic organisation, and shared our experiences of a collective and non-hierarchical approach to the creative process. The conversation covered applications for public funding calls, production planning, the organisation of guest performances, and the long-term planning and development of an artistic programme. Through this, we wanted to empower and inspire students to engage independently and ethically with the independent scene, and to open up ideas, visions, and possibilities for working outside institutional frameworks.

On June 12, we held the second talk with fourth-year Acting and Media students, together with the award-winning Slovenian director and professor of directing at AGRFT in Ljubljana, Žiga Divjak. We discussed the themes, methods, and processes involved in creating devised and documentary theatre, drawing on our own experiences while also touching upon the work of artists and collectives active on the European theatre scene.

Both conversations were open to all students of APURI and the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. The students, to put it mildly, delighted us with their questions, comments, and reflections. We were very happy to meet new generations of theatre makers and actors, and we concluded the conversations by inviting them to an open dress rehearsal of our new production, Čvor, directed by Žiga Divjak.

 The talks  and workshops were funded through a public call by the  Student Cultural Centre Rijeka (#SKC).